Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
The Department of Food and Public Distribution successfully organizes Iconic Week Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav from 15-21 November
Shri Piyush Goyal made significant announcements during his visit to Manipur, Imphal
Shri Goyal virtually inaugurated the office building of Divisional Office Hubballi in Karnataka and Food Security Museum at Tamil Nadu
FCI’s first state of art Quality Control Lab was inaugurated by MoS, Shri Choubey
Virtual and Physical events organised during the week-long celebration
FCI to organise 624 events to commemorate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav throughout the year across
The Department of Food and Public Distribution under Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution commemorated and celebrated 75 years of India’s Independence as the Iconic Week ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ from November 15, 2021 till November 21, 2021.
Several activities were organised round the week to honour the essence of united India. However, various organisations under the Department will continue to organise activities throughout the year.
On the first day of celebration, the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Piyush Goyal virtually inaugurated the office building, Divisional Office Hubballi in Karnataka and Food Security Museum at Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu along with a Photo Exhibition.
In his address, he said, “Apart from working on various aspects of Food Security maintenance in our country, I am happy to note that they are equally indulgent in reaching out to people and making them known among stakeholders through various events, most notable being the celebration of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.”
Minister of State  for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Ashwinin Kumar Choubey and Minister of State  for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Rural Development, Ms. Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti also virtually attended the event.
In another programme, Shri Goyal virtually inaugurated 50th Convocation Ceremony of National Sugar Institute, Kanpur on November 16, 2021 as a part of celebration of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebration.
“The Sugar industry is the backbone of rural economy & as experts of Sugar Industry you are crucial to bring Aatmanirbharta to farmers, villages & nation,” he told the students during the address.
Minister of State  for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Rural Development, Ms. Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti also physically attended the event in Kanpur.
During his maiden visit to North-East as a part of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebration, Shri Goyal announced setting up a mega handloom cluster at Olympic silver medalist Saikohm Mirabai Chanu’s native village in Manipur’s Imphal East district. The estimated cost of mega handloom cluster is Rs 30 crore and will be established under the National Handloom Development Programme .
He also announced setting up of a handloom and handicraft village at Moirang in Bishnupur district, where the INA hoisted the tricolor flag for the first time in Indian soil. It will pay befitting tribute to the freedom fighters, particularly to the soldiers of the INA, he said.
Shri Goyal made these announcements during the inauguration ceremony of a Thematic Exhibition of Crafts organized jointly by Development Commissioner  of Manipur government and Union Ministry of Textiles in Imphal.
He attended the 'Janajati Gaurav Divas' under the Iconic Week in Manipur and Guwahati.
Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey also participated in several activities during the weeklong celebration.
He launched a short film on Procurement operations including DBT operations while attending a webinar on procurement operations and DBT.
Shri Choubey also visited Bihar where he attended programmes on ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.’
He also inaugurated 50,000 MTs Modern Rail-linked Grand Silo at Changsari, Assam. Speaking on the occasion he said, it is a great initiative to build such a grand SILO in Assam for the storage of food grains and its sustainability.
Shri Choubey ingugrated Food Corporation of India’s  first state-of-art Quality Control laboratory for in house testing of food grain samples in Gurugram.
In addition, other activities were organised by various divisions of DFPD.
A field visit to Fair Price Shops in Uttar Pradesh was organised by DFPD for journalists and media persons of Delhi. The journalists were educated on various activities of FCI, procurement and how Public Distribution System is being done.
A webinar on ‘India’s Journey in PDS Reforms to ensure Food Security’ was organised in association with United Nations World Food Programme. High level experts participated in the webinar and deliberated upon the Journey of technology based PDS reforms in India, India’s experience in ensuring food-security during COVID-19 crisis, Supply chain reforms & innovations for addressing food wastage and storage losses and Role of Operations Research, Artificial intelligence, and other new technologies in transformation of TPDS.
Another webinar on Interaction with Farmers, Self Help Groups on ‘Best Practices in Sugarcane Farming’ was organised. DFPD made direct dialogue with sugarcane farmers emphasising on ‘Best Practices in Sugarcane Farming’. Also, Sugar mills were asked to produce more ethanol for better cash flow thereby ensuring sustainable industry. Farmers shared their best practices like use of high yielding varieties, drip irrigation, soil health improvement etc. with the department.
Another interaction on the benefit of e-NWR and on advantage of warehouses registration was organised. Over 120 participants attended the webinar. During the event, the division shared that registration fees with WDRA substantially reduced to Rs. 500 for FPOs/PACS/SHGs as compared to Rs. 5000 to Rs. 30,000/- for other conventional warehouses.
Apart from virtual events, physical events were also organised. An awareness generation programme for farmers on efficient storage and quality control was organised in which 30 farmers participated. The event was organised by Indian Grain Management and Research Institute , Hapur. The theme of the programme was to share the role of the department in food security management in last 75 years in the country, various refractions of foodgrains and importance of fortified rice.
Also, NFSA division organised a programme under Iconic Week of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsava at Varansi. The awareness programme targeted women and children and sensitised the participants about the importance of fortified rice.
Apart from above mentioned celebration, the Food Corporation of India  has planned 624 programmes in revenue districts in the country of which nearly 140 programmes have already been conducted and remaining will be organised during the year.